Instead of destroying the damaging old divide between "excellent" academic qualifications for some and "second class" for the rest, the Tories seem determined to turn back the clock. It is the wrong approach for the 21st century.

Peter Mandelson faces criticism after it emerged that he had met Lucian Grainge, the chairman and chief executive of Universal Music Groups International and an industry adviser to the government, weeks before toughening up measures to tackle illegal filesharing, the Mail reports.

Last night, Lord Mandelson was facing accusations that he had shifted government policy to favour the rich and powerful.
Ministers sparked outrage this week by announcing that anyone caught illicitly downloading tracks and films could have their internet connection cut off.

Philip Johnston, in the Telegraph, wonders whether David Cameron will be able to avoid Labour's pitfalls on welfare reform.

The Labour left would have you believe that their party's failure to do many of the things it promised in 1997 can be attributed to the dominance of the Blairites.
In reality, throughout this period the policy was in the hands of the current prime minister. If he wants a monument to his years in power, the failure effectively to reform welfare provides it. Can David Cameron avoid the same epitaph?

Frankly, there are far too many MPs, and far too many of them can do what they like because they're in a safe seat.
They know that they could put a blue or red rosette on the back end of a donkey and they'd still win because they only need to gain a minority of the votes in their area.
There's one simple way to abolish safe seats and slash the number of MPs at the same time: a change in our electoral system.

The New York Times reports that Democrats hope the death of US senator Ted Kennedy provides some respite from the angry denunciations of this summer over healthcare reforms.

The death of Senator Edward M Kennedy has quickly become a rallying point for Democratic advocates of a broad healthcare overhaul, a signature Kennedy issue that became mired in partisanship while he fought his illness away from the Capitol.